Pochettino pleased with England duo

21 November 2013 01:01

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Adam Lallana and Jay Rodriguez enjoyed differing fortunes on their England debuts, but manager Mauricio Pochettino only sees the past fortnight as being positive for them as individuals and Southampton as a whole.

The pair were rewarded for a fine start to the season by joining team-mate Rickie Lambert for the national team's friendlies with Chile and Germany.

Neither were able to replicate Lambert's dream start to life in an England shirt, but Lallana was impressive in otherwise disappointing defeats at Wembley.

Such performances have put the Saints captain in Roy Hodgson's World Cup plans, but the same cannot be said for Rodriguez.

The 24-year-old failed to catch the eye on his debut against Chile, but that frustration has not been evident on his return to Southampton.

"No, not at all," Pochettino said when asked if there had been a negative reaction from Rodriguez ahead of this weekend's clash with Arsenal.

"They have all returned very motivated, very happy to have played their part in the national side.

"They are both really excited to put the Southampton shirt back on and to be playing on Saturday.

"The experience for them has been really positive, for their experience and for the performances in the future.

"They have all returned with great motivation to train with us and looking ahead very excitedly for the game on Saturday.

"I think any experience that they garner, that they acquire with the national side, is going to be beneficial for us, is going to be positive for us.

"Any experience that they get on international duty will be a bonus for Southampton we are very pleased about that."